


Stones That Aren't Stones

by Jade_Dragoness



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Dragons, Fluff, Humor, Kid Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-10
Updated: 2008-12-10
Packaged: 2017-10-18 23:25:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/194438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jade_Dragoness/pseuds/Jade_Dragoness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin learns the perils of picking up interesting rocks in the forest. Spoilers up to 1x11</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stones That Aren't Stones

“Mummy! Mummy! Mummy!”

Arthur paused at the door to Gaius’ workroom and his eyebrows rose at the sound of three high-pitched voices. It wasn’t often that Gaius brought children into his workroom. There were too many toxic things within easy reach of little arms. Gaius wouldn’t risk it and preferred to deliver his medicines in person, when he wasn’t making Merlin do it.

Arthur cautiously opened the door. If there were snot-covered brats inside, he was leaving. He didn’t need Merlin to clean out his bed room that badly. But his look inside revealed no one in sight.

Baffled, he walked in.

“Mummy! Mummy! I‘m hungry!”

“Mummy, I‘m thirsty!“

“I‘m sleepy! Mummy!”

The voices were coming from Merlin’s room. Merlin’s voice murmured an answer that was too low for Arthur to catch. Arthur’s eyebrows climbed even higher. A smile spread across his face. Was Merlin entertaining a mother and her children in his room? Oh, this he had to see.

He walked softly over to Merlin’s door, making sure that his steps fell lightly on the floor. Arthur didn’t want to alert whomever was behind the door that he was coming.

“Mummy! Make him stop biting me!”

“You bit me first!”

“Mummy, I can‘t sleep! They’re being too loud! Make them be quiet!”

Mouth twitching in amusement, Arthur pushed the door open quickly. The door creaked and groaned and the noise made Merlin’s head snap up. His blue eyes widened.

Arthur stared at him, stunned beyond words, because in Merlin’s lap were three little dragons.

“Mummy? Who‘s that man?” asked one of them, its voice high and childish.

Arthur opened his mouth to speak, then promptly shut it. Merlin and Arthur stared at each other. Arthur finally got a grip on himself. He swallowed and said, “Well, I can honestly say this wasn‘t what I was expecting.”

“Mummy, _who_ is that?” asked another one of the little dragons.

A laugh escaped Arthur as he realized that 'Mummy' was Merlin. What in god’s sake has Merlin been up to? He was afraid to ask the identity of the father. He really didn’t need to know.

Arthur smirked at Merlin, his eye dancing with mirth.

Merlin’s eyes narrowed themselves at him. Then he smiled back, as smile that wasn‘t at all friendly. “Oh, that man. He‘s your daddy.”

Arthur’s eyes grew huge. “Oh no! Don‘t you-!”

Whatever he would have said next was cut off as he was jumped upon by three little dragons, each about a foot long, but still heavy enough that their combined weight sent him crashing to the floor.

“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!”

“Merlin!” Arthur bellowed, but Merlin was just laughing his damn fool head off.

“Daddy, I‘m hungry!”

“Daddy!”  
*-*-*-*

Merlin had finally managed to get the dragons off of Arthur. After much pulling and tugging and Arthur cursing him for being rough because the little things had wickedly large claws.

Merlin then managed to calm them down with some leftovers from breakfast and they settled down into a pile in the center of his bed, curled up tail to snout like puppies. Only with scales and wings, thought Arthur.

They both escaped Merlin’s room, leaving the little dragons to sleep. Merlin closed the door behind him and turned to find Arthur staring at him intently.

“What - Are those things doing here?” he asked through gritted teeth. He just couldn’t wait to hear this story, Arthur thought sarcastically.

Merlin flushed. “It‘s not what you think!”

“It‘s not what I think? I think that you have three magical beasts in your room whose very existence will get you killed,” hissed Arthur.

“Okay, it is what you think,” admitted Merlin. He rubbed at his head. “Look, I didn‘t think this would happen.”

Arthur just started at him in disbelief.

Merlin explained, “I thought they were just stones. Three large, interesting-looking stones that I found out in the forest, near a cave only a few days ago. I brought them back to show to Gaius. I thought he could tell me what type of rock they were.”

Merlin looked embarrassed, “I wasn‘t expecting them to _hatch!_ ”

“Well, that explains how you got them into Camelot.” Arthur sighed. “You really are an idiot.”

Merlin opened his mouth to protest.

“Only you would end up being infested with dragons by _accident_ ,” continued Arthur. Merlin shut his mouth and looked sheepish. Arthur was triumphant. He said, “We need to find a way of getting them out of here.”

“Oh,” Merlin said, surprised.

“What?” asked Arthur in irritation.

“I thought - I thought you would want them killed,” admitted Merlin.

“I learned my lesson after the unicorn,” Arthur said, which was only partly true. He would be lying if he said that the thought hadn’t crossed his mind. But Merlin’s expression had been so amused, so open and soft when soothing the little monsters into sleep, that it had hit Arthur how very much he would give to keep that expression on Merlin’s face. So, he abandoned the idea. Not even daring to speak it and face Merlin‘s disappointment.

Merlin was smiling at him. Such a joyous expression that made Arthur want to smile back, in helpless enjoyment. Fortunately for Arthur’s pride, he had more self-control than that and he scowled instead.

“You have to find a way of getting out them of the castle,” he ordered.

“I will,” promised Merlin.

“And will you please tell them that I‘m not their father,” Arthur sighed, as he turned away to leave.

“I think that‘s too late,” admitted Merlin. “They didn‘t believe me when I told them I wasn‘t their mother.”

Arthur looked back to shoot Merlin an exasperated look. Merlin just shrugged, then he started smiling rather widely.

“What?” asked Arthur, pausing warily near the door. Whenever Merlin got that idiotic look on his face, one of them usually ended up in trouble. Mostly Merlin, but occasionally Arthur, so he’d learned to dread it. He still hadn’t forgotten the rat stew.

“I was just picturing the king meeting his new grandchildren,” Merlin said, held in laughter making his voice bubble with mirth.

Arthur pointed a threatening finger in his direction. “Don’t,” he ordered. “Just don‘t.”

He stomped off muttering death threats under his breath while Merlin chuckled behind him.

It wasn’t until he was out of earshot that Arthur started smiling. Because, the mental picture of the expression that his father would make at such a revelation was very amusing. Especially, once Arthur explained to his father the exact identity of the mother.

He laughed and shook his head. Only Merlin.  
*-*-*-*

Arthur had thought that would be the end of it, and he wouldn’t have to see the dragons again. So, it came as a rather nasty surprise when he woke up in the middle of the night to high-pitched whispering voices and the sound of little clawed feet scrambling and failing to climb his bed.

“Daddy! Wake up, Daddy!”

Arthur groaned and flung an arm over his eyes. This was a nightmare. It had to be.

“Daddy!” clamored the three voices in urgent unison.

Arthur admitted defeat and leaned over to peer at them. The three dragons were all leaning against his bed. Their front paws holding them as far up as they could go, while their miniature wings fluttered behind them. Their golden eyes were wide and pleading.

“Daddy!” they exclaimed happily as Arthur came into their view. Arthur eyed them in resignation.

“Alright. Fine,” he muttered, too groggy from sleep to even think of putting up a fight. He grudgingly picked them up and settled them into this bed. They scrambled excitedly all around him before settling down. One curled up onto of Arthur’s stomach while the other two settled at each of his sides.

“Daddy?” the one curled on top of Arthur asked.

“Yes?” mumbled Arthur.

“Why isn‘t Mummy sleeping here too?”

Arthur‘s eyes snapped open and he stared blankly upwards. What was he suppose to say to that?

“He‘ll join us later,” he finally admitted out of lack of anything better to say.

The children, and Arthur finally admitted to himself that they were children, even with fangs, claws, scales and wings, all chirped happily.

After that question Arthur ended up staring at the ceiling of his four post bed for a while, distracted by thoughts of Merlin also crawling into bed with him. It took the rather soothing noises of little dragons snoring away to finally make him slip back into dreams. Dreams where he and Merlin did more than just sleep on his bed.  
*-*-*-*

In the morning, when Merlin raced in, wide-eyed and panicking, Arthur was ready for him.

“You are the worst mother ever,” Arthur told him.

The little dragons, who Arthur had promptly named Pen, Art and Merlina, the only female, in honor of her rather masculine ‘mother‘, were laying sprawled, belly up, on the wooden table, having stuffed themselves silly from the food off Arthur’s plate.

“Thank god, they‘re here!” exclaimed Merlin. He been running around the castle trying to find them for hours before getting desperate enough to go ask Arthur for help.

“I‘m never having any children with you again,” said Arthur, a smirk on his face.

Merlin glared, panted for breath and glared some more. However, bent over with his hands on his knees and red-faced, he wasn’t the most threatening figure. Arthur shook his head in amusement.

“Where were you?” Arthur asked, after Merlin finally caught his breath.

“I went out to ask for advise. On them,” Merlin said, waving a hand the dragons. “When I came back, they were gone.”

Arthur crinkled his brow in puzzlement. He raised a blond eyebrow at Merlin. “Who, in god‘s name, would you go to for that kind of advise?”

“Just a friend,” Merlin said, looking away uneasily.

Arthur’s eyes narrowed. A surge jealousy flared inside him. “Well, you better take care of the children. I have to make my rounds with the guards.”

Merlin nodded. Arthur gathered his sword and coat. “Oh, and Merlin?”

Merlin looked up at him.

“Lock the door behind me. The last thing we need is them getting out in the middle of the day,” Arthur continued.

“Bye Daddy!” chirped the dragons.

“Bye kids. Behave for your mother,” said Arthur, throwing Merlin another smirk. Merlin grimaced at him.

As Arthur walked out the door he heard Merlin howl in sheer outrage, “Merlina?!”

He smirked and set off down the hallway with light bounce to his step. He was getting quite used to the little dragon brats.  
*-*-*-*

When Arthur finally made it back to his room, it was high noon and he was hungry for lunch. He knocked at his own door, feeling grateful that there were no other servants around to see him do so, as it was bound to cause some raised eyebrows. The prince knocking at his own door.

Merlin let him in after a moment. At the sight of the dragon children, Arthur paused. Was it just him or had they grown in the few hours he’d been gone?

“I know. I see it too,” said Merlin.

“They’re growing,” acknowledged Arthur. He put down his sword, and tossed off his coat to the floor, to Merlin’s snort of disgust. He ignored him and knelt by the dragons who’d grown a hand-span in length since he’d seen them mere hours ago.

They were sleeping again.

“I was told that they will be doing that a lot. Sleeping and eating, I mean,” said Merlin.

Arthur looked at him, wondering yet again at who had that sort of knowledge in Camelot. He said, “They‘re going to be too big to hide before long.”

Merlin nodded; worry making the lines of his face tight and his eyes dark.

Arthur didn’t want to admit it but he was rather worried too. He didn’t want his father to kill off the little things. They were innocents as surely as human children were, and his father had shown he had no compunction about killing human children. The dragon younglings wouldn’t stand a chance in Camelot.

He stood up and faced Merlin, settling a hand on his shoulder. “We‘ll get them out of here.”

Merlin shook his head hopelessly. “And then what?” he asked in a whisper. “They‘re little more than babies. How are they suppose to look after themselves? They don‘t even know how to find food. We‘ve been the ones feeding them!”

Merlin’s face was so anguished that Arthur’s own heart felt heavy. Then an idea struck him.

“That‘s it,” he said.

“What‘s it?” asked Merlin, puzzled.

Arthur smiled. “We are going hunting!”

Merlin just looked puzzled.  
*-*-*-*

“This is a terrible idea,” said Merlin, staggering a bit under the weight of the dragons hidden in the dark leather saddlebags

Arthur swung his empty crossbow in a smooth arc, drawing it out to point at various items in the stable.

“Don‘t gripe. This is a perfect idea,” he chided. “We need to get them out of the castle. And you said it yourself, they don‘t know how to hunt. So, we‘ll have to teach them.” Arthur paused, thought about he’d said and corrected himself, “ _I‘ll_ have to teach them.”

Excited exclamations of ‘daddy’ came from Merlin’s arms.

Arthur closed in on them and poked them gently, teasingly. “Stay quiet,” he ordered softly. The dragon hatchlings giggled and were silent once more. As far as they were concerned this was a great game.

Arthur only hoped they kept ‘playing’ until they were far enough away so they out of range of the castle walls and the weapons wielded by the guards.

They were lucky that, as the crown prince, the guards at the gate didn’t dare search his personal belongings. The dragon children would be safe in the saddlebags, but only if they kept silent. If they spoke, or made any kind of noise to draw attention, not even Arthur’s status as royalty would keep them unnoticed. Or alive.

Merlin, still looking worried and skeptical of Arthur’s plan, but hurried to get everything ready.

Arthur didn’t dare help, as much as he wanted to make Merlin hurry up. This had to look like any other time they had gone out. As far as Arthur’s father was concerned, Arthur was taking a few days of hunting in, as yet another feast was scheduled to start in a couple of weeks. It would keep Arthur and Merlin out of the castle for several days, and then they would return to enjoy the unavoidable fascination of being bored near to death with speeches and small talk.

That was the cover story. In reality, Arthur was going to spend the next few days intently teaching everything he knew about surviving in the middle of the woods to the young dragons.

“We‘re set,” said Merlin, knocking Arthur out of his thoughts and plans.

Arthur nodded and mounted up on his horse. He gave the hidden dragons a final pat and another order to be quiet, before urging his horse out of the stables. Merlin followed on the own horse, that Arthur had long since assigned to him. It was the one least likely to trample a fallen rider. Something that Merlin had needed those first few days learning to ride.

“Stop looking like you stole something and are worried about being caught,” hissed Arthur at Merlin out the corner of his mouth. He smiled and nodded to some of the people who waved to him.

“I can‘t help it,” moaned Merlin. His shoulders where hunched and he kept tossing worried looks in the direction of Arthur’s saddlebags.

Arthur shot him an exasperated look. “I‘m not asking you to lie. I know you‘re rubbish at that. Just don‘t say anything and wipe that look off your face.”

Merlin struggled and finally smoothed his expression into that smiling, I’m-so-innocent look that had gotten him thrown into the stocks so many times. Arthur eyed it warily. Well, it was better than that he’d been wearing before, he thought grudgingly. One of these days, he really needed to take some time to teach Merlin how to lie. It was a wonder how he’d managed to survive in court so long without that skill.

Arthur sighed, and urged his horse to move a just a little bit faster as they started past the guards. In moments they were both out of the castle and out of range of any weapons. Merlin and Arthur exchanged relieved looks.

“Now, comes the really hard part,” said Arthur.  
*-*-*-*

The dragons hadn’t been happy at first at the idea of having to hunt for their own food. They’d quickly grown quite used to being fed by Merlin or Arthur that they balked at having to be patient in stalking down their prey, instead of just being instantly fed.

“Art. Pen. Merlina,” said Arthur firmly. “You are behaving in a manner unfit for someone of your royal lineage.”

Merlin rolled his eyes at him. Arthur ignored that.

“But, Daddy! We’re hungry!” they cried out.

Arthur hardened his heart against their piteous cries. This was ultimately for their own good. It was rather disconcerting how much sympathy he now had for his father. He hadn’t been half as much trouble, had he?

“Maybe, we can spare some of our food,” suggested Merlin, obviously swayed by the big-eyed pleading.

“No,” said Arthur. He gave Merlin a glare. “Set up camp. You‘re just being a distraction.”

“Yes, sire,” sighed Merlin.

Fortunately, without Merlin to be a soft-touch, the dragons quickly stopped whining and started learning. Once they caught their first rabbit, the hunting spark was ignited in them and they took to it as if born to it.

Which they were, Arthur realized. He laughed at himself. Somewhere along the way he’d stopped seeing them as dragons.

The dragons had so much fun that it took Arthur ordering them several times before they left off hunting rabbits and returned to camp. Luckily for Arthur and Merlin both, the dragons had caught enough rabbits to proudly give their parents two each and they didn’t have to suffer through field rations.

Merlin spent a good hour praising their success and they excitedly recounted the tales of their first day of hunting to him. Arthur, having already seen all of it in action, just leaned back, enjoyed his belly full of meat and reveled in Merlin’s delighted expression.

“And then,” said Art. His tail waved excitedly behind him. “I crept up behind the rabbit. Making sure to stay downwind just like Daddy said. And waited for the right moment.” His wings fluttered. “I pounced! It didn‘t even get a chance to run!”

He’d been the one to make the most kills that day. Arthur was rather proud of him. Merlina and Pen were already asleep, their bellies distended, and snoring away.

“And then - ah,” yawned Art, as sleep finally got a grip on him. “I ate it up. It had brown fur and - ah- then-”

“Go to sleep,” murmured Merlin. The little dragon nodded and sleepily plopped onto his back, wings still gently moving. His snoring soon joined that of his siblings.

Arthur and Merlin watched them sleep for a moment.

“Okay,” admitted Merlin. “So, maybe it wasn‘t a stupid idea.”

Arthur snorted and flicked a piece of gristle at him.

“Never doubt your prince,” he said smugly.  
*-*-*-*

When they woke up the next morning the dragons had doubled in size. Now, they came up to their hips. It seemed that they had moved them out of the castle just in time. If they had waited, the dragons would have been too large to go unseen for long.

Arthur and Merlin kept exchanging relieved looks over their breakfasts as Pen, Art and Merlina frolicked around the camp site, startling the horses at several points.

Today, they would only be hunting for a while because it was Merlin’s turn to teach them. He had to teach them to hide themselves away from humans and never ever let themselves be seen.

The dragons had been bewildered at the idea but Merlin was resolute. He’d been the one to explain how other dragons had been hunted to near extinction. How they were among the last.

From Merlin’s face, Arthur knew that breaking the dragon children’s innocence was also breaking his heart. But Arthur didn’t think he could stand to tell them, not when he knew his own father had been directly responsible for that devastation. He spent the entire talk mostly looking away and focusing on sharpening his sword.

“I hated doing that,” Merlin said. He sat down next to Arthur on a log and looked off at where the dragons were swimming. They’d found a lake and had taught them to fish before breaking the awful news. Arthur had thought it would be better for their survival for them to learn different ways of feeding themselves.

“Yes,” agreed Arthur.

“I rather feel sympathetic for my mother now,” Merlin said.

Arthur laughed softly, “I was thinking the same thing about my father just the other day.” He looked at Merlin with a smile, “I take it back. Maybe, you aren‘t such a terrible mother after all.”

“Thanks sire,” answered Merlin dryly. “My life is now complete.”

“Mind you,” smirked Arthur. “You‘d still make a terrible wife. It‘s been how long since you cleaned my rooms?”

Merlin narrowed his eyes at him. “I‘ve been busy. Raising our children.”

Their mouths twitched and in the next moment they were laughing. Leaning against each other and just laughing, loud and free.

“How did this happen again?” Merlin asked, too amused to stop smiling.

“You were being a girl, picking up pretty stones out of the forest,” answered Arthur.

Merlin poked him for that.

“Are you going to kiss now?” asked an eager voice.

Arthur swore and nearly fell off the log. Somehow the dragons had sneaked up on them. They really had taken those stalking lessons to heart.

Merlina, Pen and Art were looking at them such hopeful expressions.

Merlin opened his mouth and then shut it without saying a word. He gave Arthur a helpless look.

Arthur rolled his eyes. Of course, Merlin would have the strength of will to tell them that they were among the last of their kind but he couldn’t bring himself to convince the dragons that neither he nor Arthur were actually their parents.

Arthur started smiling. And while Merlin was still trying to come up with an excuse, Arthur grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a fierce kiss.

Merlin gasped into his mouth, but Arthur simply took that opportunity to slip his tongue into Merlin’s mouth. Arthur groaned at the heat he found there. Merlin’s lips were surprisingly lush, softer than they looked.

“I think Mummy and Daddy need some time alone,” whispered Merlina, rather loudly, to her siblings, after the kissing went on for several minutes.

“Aw,” protested the other two.

This more than anything made Arthur and Merlin part. Arthur shot them a look and they chirped and ran off.

Arthur watched the dragons run back to the lake, making sure they were actually splashing in the water before turning to Merlin. Merlin’s cheeks were pink and his lips were red and shiny from where he’d licked them. They drew Arthur’s eyes, and he pulled Merlin back to him for another kiss. Merlin hitched a leg over Arthur’s waist and pulled him close.

They lost themselves in the kisses.

Arthur was mouthing the side of Merlin’s neck, when Merlin panted out, “We can‘t do this here.”

“Right, right,” Arthur mumbled agreeably. He didn’t stop.

Merlin whined and arched his back. Arthur greedily held his hips close. Merlin protested, “The children are watching.”

This made Arthur finally pull himself from the tantalizing length of Merlin‘s pale throat. He looked at the lake where in a quick scurry the dragons looked away.

“They aren‘t exactly our children,” said Arthur, amused. But he reluctantly pulled away from the warmth of Merlin’s hold and got up anyway.

He pulled Merlin to his feet and they stood for a moment, slotted close together. Just enjoying the feel of each other before regretfully parting.

“When we get back to the castle,” promised Arthur. Arthur gently touched his cheek, bring Merlin’s eyes to meet his own.

Merlin nodded, disappointed but in agreement.

Disappointed high-pitched noises came from the lake.

Arthur laughed. Smirking, he turned to the dragons. Time for a lesson in surviving being chased by a man with a sword.  
*-*-*-*

Time ran rather quickly after that. In just a few days, the dragons had grown to the size of Arthur’s favorite warhorse. They also had been taught everything that Merlin and Arthur could think of when it came to survival. But when it came to parting, the dragons, who’d matured nearly as quickly as they’d grown, reverted to their little baby selves. They whimpered and cried at the idea of being separated from their Mummy and Daddy.

It had taken some firm talking to, by both Merlin and Arthur, for them to finally part heading in the direction that Arthur knew saw the least amount of people and the best hunting.

“Do you think we‘ll ever see them again?” asked Merlin, as they watched Pen’s tail vanish into the undergrowth of the forest.

Arthur sighed, “Not if they took our lessons to heart. Come on. We‘re already nearly a day late getting back.”

They set off on the horses back where the main road cut through the forest.

“You know, we didn‘t teach them _everything_ ,” Merlin finally said.

Arthur shook his head, “We taught them everything we could, in the time that we could.”

“That‘s not what I meant,” Merlin said. “I know we did the best we could. It’s just…we never did teach them to fly.”

Arthur blinked, “Huh. I didn‘t think of that.”

“I‘m sure they‘ll pick it up,” said Merlin, after a moment. “I didn’t teach them to talk and they were speaking almost as soon as they were out of their shells.”

“I was wondering about that actually,” admitted Arthur. “How could there be dragon eggs when nearly all dragons are wiped out?”

Merlin lit up, “Oh, I know. That friend, the one who told me about their growth rate, he said that a dragon egg can take as long as fifty years to incubate.”

Arthur thought about that, then eyed Merlin in mute horror.

“What?” asked Merlin, confused.

“That means that there could be more dragons hatching out in the forest,” said Arthur. He pointed a firm finger at Merlin. “You are not to bring any more _interesting_ stones into Camelot! And that’s an order!”

End

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote semi-serious Arthur and Merlin have hatchlings fic. *facepalms and giggles*


End file.
